Closing the Distance
by SakataMakoto
Summary: Takao wants to see more of Midorima's emotions and plans to get them out if his friend by force. He sets up a plan to do all kinds of things that would either annoy or anger Midorima, but in doing so their relationship starts to change. TakaMido/MidoTaka, boy's love, WIP, rating T to M later on.
1. Chapter 1

**Closing the Distance chapter 1  
><strong>

Watching Midorima wasn't very interesting. Yet, Takao couldn't stop himself from doing it. He wondered why it sometimes was like watching a boring movie, that you keep watching because you expect something will happen eventually. When it doesn't it can be very disappointing, but Takao had learned that in this case, whenever something did happen, it was extremely worthwhile.

Any kind of reaction Midorima showed was a joy to watch, but the best moments were when Takao could provoke those reactions, or expressions himself. Since the green-haired shooter was usually so stoic, it was not very easy to make him show any kind of emotion. Therefore, Takao had been trying out all sorts of things. Just small things, usually mostly bothersome things.

Taking away his rolling pencil for a test, hiding his lucky item, placing his glasses somewhere else after showering in the gym's showers. Of course Midorima got mad at him each time, but he didn't mind.

After all, anger was a little more exciting than just regular annoyance, and Midorima always had ways to get back at him. Takao almost started believing in karma, sinde he always lost at rock-paper-scissors, resulting in him pulling the cart whenever.

Takao didn't mind playing Midorima's slave as long as he could be with him and witness his rare expressions of anger, perseverance, surprise, and very rarely, happiness. He observed, and took in every emotion displayed on the face he liked.

Lately, he was yearning for more of it though. He started wondering if there was no way to really break through to him, and his chest hurt when he remembered the expressions he had already seen. He just wanted Midorima to share his thoughts, feelings, daily meaningless worries...

Takao clenched his fists. His mind had been made up, somewhere between third period and during lunch, where he once again talked to Midorima, but got only basic responses. He wanted so much more, he wanted to hear his voice, he wanted Midorima to actually know he was there.

More specifically, that he was there for him. And if he were to be angry, he wanted these feelings to be directed to him. He wanted to make Midorima aware, truly aware, of who he was dealing with. Not only in basketball, but in life. He yearned for it, to be loved or hated, but not to be ignored.

And so Takao thought of a plan, to figure out how far he could go. To get what he wanted. Because, he knew very well that he wasn't a good guy. Not really.

-

Friday, right after practice, Takao announced something.  
>'Hey, coach?' he called out. But everyone was around, and everyone listened.<br>'I can't come to practice tomorrow. I've got a date.'

Takao was smiling a little smugly. It was the kind of smile that made others resent you. Midorima also noticed how the others shot a quick glance at him before they continued doing whatever they were doing. Still, they listened. And so did he. Takao? A date?

The coach sighed, exactly the same sigh as when he allowed Midorima one of his so-called selfish things.  
>'Alright. Keep in shape though.' And with that, everything went back to the order of the day.<p>

For some reason, Takao disappeared from the dressing rooms very fast today, and for some reason, Midorima did not feel like practising on his own today, not even after some rest. In the end, he went home as well.

He involuntarily wondered who Takao would be having a date with, and tried to recall if he had seen him talk to any girls, but nothing would come to mind. Then again, it was the least he would pay attention to so he might just not remember. And it's not as if he was always nearby, although often.

It was no big deal, he thought. They were at a perfectly normal age to go on dates. It wasn't strange, and if it would not occur every weekend, it would not pose a problem for basket practice either. This was fine, of course it was fine.

Even so he could not concentrate on math that evening, even reading didn't go well. In order to get his mind off things, since it was apparently needed, he watched a movie that played on TV. A detective story with an intelligent plot at least managed to distract him a little, and after that he went to bed.

The sound of an incoming text message woke him up in the morning, a few minutes before his alarm would go off. He reluctantly reached out for his phone, knowing it would be Takao. He both did and did not want to read the text. But a tiny voice in his head whispered that it might be to inform him that the date had been cancelled.

It wasn't.

_Shin-chan! *A* Goodmoooorning!  
>Do your best at practice and catch passes!<br>Even if they're not mine LOL  
><em>  
>Midorima scowled and threw his phone - perfectly - into his sports bag. What was that idiot thinking? He had no intention to reply, his mood had turned sour. What day was it? Probably one with bad luck. He had to get up, eat decent breakfast, find out about today's lucky item and head to practice.<p>

He nearly spit out a mouthful of high-fibre cereal when he heard Oha-asa's horoscope. He was said to have a really bad day, and no chance of getting a lucky item for counter-measures. After all, it was 'a precious gift from your lover'. He cursed softly. What kind of item was that? There's no way everyone would have such a thing! And what was worse, it wasn't something you could go out and buy.

This was going to be a terrible day, he thought. He even considered calling the coach to cancel on practice, but they were already one member short, and if he turned on his phone again, he would have to see that text once more. Basically, he had no choice but to pack his things and deal with it.

Takao laughed after he sent his text message to Midorima. It was pure self-satisfaction, and the only thing he regretted was not being able to see how he would react. But he knew, he knew the exact scowl he'd make. Combined with the horoscope that he also checked once he was awake, he was almost sad that he wouldn't be there today to see the stoic shooter's scowl at practice.

But in fact he actually did plan a date. A very generic date, visiting the park, walking. There could be lunch, shopping, seeing a movie, whatever she wanted. He had no experience in dating, but how hard could it be?

The girl he had asked was also fairly generic. He had overheard her friends saying that she liked him, and he had indeed spotted her a few times now, she had even come to watch the team's practice.

He felt only minor discomfort at knowing that she was merely a pawn in his plan, but he wanted this experience to be genuine, and so he needed a real girl, who could come to him during school as well. Who people could talk about.

She was already at the station when he arrived, and as a gentleman should, he apologized for being late, she answered that it was fine, that she had only just arrived as well. Very generic, but at the same time perfect.

Takao noticed that she had dressed up for the date, and she looked better than she did at school. Her long hair hung loose, she was wearing a skirt, a soft pink blouse and cream jacket. He made a comment on how nice it looked on her. It wasn't a lie, even. But he had to be careful. Don't tell her all kinds of nice things and then drop her.

'Let's go then, shall we?' he said with a smile. She nodded, she seemed happy. Walking side by side, having some small talk to start off, Takao was pretty sure that to anyone they would look like a young couple on a first date.

He was planning on making it an enjoyable experience for her, so she would tell her friends about it and word would spread, eventually reaching even Midorima's ears. For a moment his smile changed into a devilish grin, but he corrected himself quickly.

-

As usual, Midorima was well on time for practice. He had already changed into his jersey when the other team members arrived. Ootsubo ordered them all to hurry up so they could start. Midorima sat down, hands folded, staring at the floor. It was strangely quiet with just the occasional chatter of the other members around him. None of them sounded as loud as Takao always did, but then again Takao was always much closer to him. Literally.

The others kept their distance, showed not much interest in Midorima at all. Of course it was because he also didn't show interest in them. But now, without Takao around, the distance between the ace and the regular players was all the more visible. Midorima noticed, and because he noticed, in his heart he knew that he did care.

In middle school it had been different. No matter what, they shared a bond back then. He could pretend to be indifferent, but no one really accepted that. He was included in everything they did, even if he was just there. Such different personalities were gathered and put together in one team, young people with talents but also imperfections, until things changed.

'Midorima. We're starting.' He had been so deep in thought that he hadn't noticed the others leaving. Ootsubo was standing in the door opening, waiting. He didn't sound concerned or anything, he was just calling out. Midorima got up and stretched. During warming up, he did fine by just focusing on his movements.

Actual practice went different though. They were playing a practice game, and Midorima noticed that he wasn't quite following the game. His mind drifted off to questions he asked himself about Takao's date, while at the same time he wondered why he should be bothered.

Completely out of his control he wondered again who Takao would have a date with, and he tried to construct a list of girls that Takao might date. But he paid so little attention to girls that he could only think of six or so girls that he did remember, either because they came to talk to him before or because they were class representatives or something.

Suddenly the sound of a basketball bouncing high off the floor behind him roughly shook him free from his toughts. He turned and saw it, right when Ootsubo shouted out to him.  
>'Midorima! How could you not get that pass?'<p>

The shooter had to remain silent. 'Sorry,' he said clearly. He never missed passes. Ever.  
>A first year picked up the ball and the coach came over.<br>'If you're feeling unwell you should rest. You're out for now, okay?'

And with that, he was dismissed. He hurried to the bench, hating himself for letting something like this happen. As he sat down, he watched the game. It wasn't much though, so his mind drifted to Takao's date again. What would they do? Where would they go? He realised he only knew what dates were supposed to be like from TV series, and he barely watched those.

Would they hold hands? He involuntarily conjured up an image of Takao, holding hands with a shadowy figure, smiling, talking. The image of Takao in his head was vivid, his expressions etched in his memory. Midorima even started thinking that his friend actually had a lot of expressions, from his sneaky grin to a wide smile to utter disappointment.

Would the girl see those? Which emotions would she read on his face? What... what would love look like as expression? He couldn't tell. Suddenly, it frustrated him that he was thinking about Takao and his date so much. Why should he? Takao could do what he wanted, it didn't matter!

Midorima called the coach over, telling him that he was feeling fine and wanted to be on the court again. And so he joined the game and played, his thoughts finally set on the game. But all the others could tell that his style was suddenly more harsh, almost violent.

-

During the walk through the park, Takao was mainly asking questions in order to keep their talk going. She seemed to be having fun though, as she talked about the things she liked, getting a new phone, which coffee shop she preferred. All small talk, but that was fine.

They visited the temple near the pond, watched sparrows eat the crumbs of bread a child was throwing around, saw a street performer on stilts do tricks. All in all, it went perfectly so far, Takao thought. All he needed to do was leave a good impression.

'Is there anything else you'd like to do?' He asked, making it sound nice, giving her the chance to choose what they did next. Of course, if she wanted to leave that would have been alright, but the way she smiled told him she wouldn't do that.

'If you want, we could visit that coffeeshop I talked about?' She suggested.  
>'Oh, but I also want to buy the new CanCan! Can we do that first, Takao-kun?'<br>'Sure,' he replied with a sweet smile. He wasn't used to smiling so much, it almost started to hurt his cheeks.

Takao looked around at the sports magazines while she looked for her fashion magazine. He spotted the monthly basketball magazine that often featured high school teams as well, but he didn't need to buy it. There was always someone else in the team who did.

After that, she took him to the coffee shop. It was small, and sort of cute with armchairs with flowery cushions and cute lamps dangling from the ceiling. Takao guessed that a place like this is what girls like, after all.

'Hey, what would you like?' He took out his wallet, making it obvious that he would treat her.  
>She was looking at some cute cakes and pies inside the counter as she looked up.<br>'Oh, eh...'  
>'Pick any cake and drink you want, my treat,' he still added.<p>

'Eh...' She turned to look at the cakes again, now with a blush on her face. Maybe because she had not expected him to treat her to cake, maybe because the young woman behind the counter was smiling knowingly.

Finally Takao ordered their cakes and drinks and flashed another dazzling smile at the woman, and to his surprise she blushed a little as well when she gave him his change. It certainly stroked his ego though. It gave him the confidence that these things actually worked. And maybe it would have an effect on Midorima as well.

This time, she was the one to ask Takao some questions, and he saw answering them as an obstacle. But all in all, this wasn't so hard. He just told her about the basketball team, and then she mentioned that she had indeed heard about how the fact that Midorima joined their team was 'kind of a big deal'.

Her phrasing made Takao laugh, and he had to admit that it was indeed a big deal. So he told her in short what he knew about the Generation of Miracles. She nodded, saying that after all, people with a lot of talent are different from those who need to do their best and still not reach a certain level. Takao had no choice but to admit that was true. He was very much aware of that difference, but still lucky enough to have a degree of talent that put him at least one step higher than the average player.

They said goodbye at the station. She thanked him for asking her, saying she'd had fun, and all he could do was smile and agree, this was the only moment where he couldn't think of anything proper to say. He wasn't sure how dates should end. They hadn't held hands, or anything else, so what was their official status now? What are you exactly after one date?

Takao almost regretted asking this girl out for a date, simply because he had expected to be bored, that this would be a necessary pain. But it wasn't so bad. She was a decent girl, but he had made up his mind about this. He would go through with it, even if it meant hurting her. It had to be done.

-

Midorima was completely beat after practice. When the coach whistled and announced that they were done for the day, the shooter didn't notice the concerned looks he got from some of his teammates. Of course they were aware that they were playing with a member of the Generation of Miracles, but they had never seen Midorima play like this. He had never needed to, so they wondered what was going on.

He was still breathing heavily when the coach came over.  
>'Midorima... usually I can forgive you because your level motivates the others, but today something seemed off. If it's anything I can help with, let me know.' Midorima shot a look at him, but he was not even able to talk, even if he had wanted to. He shook his head.<p>

'Alright then. I trust you on that. Don't do anything stupid.' He nodded.  
>'Everyone, good work! I'll see you next Monday.' They all headed to the changing rooms, Midorima following a little slower. No one on the team could help him. He didn't even know what was wrong with him, only that his thoughts reverted back to Takao way too often.<p>

He undressed quickly once he got into the shower room. He turned the temperature of the water up until he was under a steaming stream. Sweating had made his skin feel cold, and water didn't warm it up. As he washed, he came to admit that he missed Takao's chatter. It was just too quiet right now, too quiet around him, and there was no one to stop his train of thoughts.

Midorima even whispered his name as he clutched his sponge. Nothing was the same without him. He found this strange, because it meant that Takao was special to him. And although he considered the other Generation members special as well, it was still different. Maybe it was just because Takao's one-sided attention was so strong.

It was Takao who was hanging out with Midorima, not the other way round. At first, he believed he was basically tolerating Takao, so in time this sensation must have changed. Maybe Midorima wasn't just tolerating Takao anymore, but rather starting to like having him around.

And since Midorima felt so uneasy today, he concluded that having Takao around made him feel more at ease. Takao also worked as a catalyst, he thought, a medium between Midorima and the rest. People didn't talk to Midorima a lot when Takao wasn't there, simply because he was so hard to approach. Takao made that easier. Takao made him seem more human.

Usually Midorima would stay after practice and continue on his own, but not this time. He had used up too much energy during their match, so training wouldn't accomplish anything now. He went straight home, where he had lunch in front of the TV.

Still, because he didn't have anything to do besides homework and studying, he went for a run later in the afternoon. Running was something he would always do alone, so it wouldn't bother him that Takao wasn't there with him. He started being bothered less about the date as well, until finally he found himself able to relax.

Back at home, he remembered that he still hadn't replied to Takao's message. He didn't really want to reply, but not replying at all was also against his personal principles. Midorima plucked his phone out of his bag, where it had been all day, and started typing a text.

_Hey. Hope the date went well...  
><em>  
>No. He erased it.<p>

_Shut up Takao...  
><em>  
>No. <p>

_Practice went terrible...  
><em>  
>Never.<p>

_Had an unlucky day...  
><em>  
>Definitely not.<p>

_Practice went okay. You?  
><em>  
>He pressed 'send', and before he could put his phone down he had a reply. That was unusually fast.<p>

_All fine! Had cake~*A*  
>It was delish! 3<br>_  
>Midorima couldn't help but frown at Takao's text message. There were too many smilies, and his texts were so... youthful. Even though he frowned, the corners of his lips went up for a moment, before he grumbled 'idiot', and threw his phone on his bed.<p>

The rest of the day went by as always. He thought he'd figured it out, even though he still couldn't really imagine Takao going on a date and having fun, but maybe he was wrong. He thought it was all okay now.

Yet, as he was lying in bed at night he found it hard to fall asleep. His mind just wouldn't stop going in circles, on and on it repeated missing a pass, the lack of Takao, hot water, silence, text messages, date.

No matter how much he tried to deny it, it did bother him.

-

During the trainride back home, Takao checked his phone only to discover he had gotten nothing from Midorima yet. He was disappointed, although he knew not to expect replies immediately unless it was important. Especially since he was aware that his texts pissed off Midorima half of the time.

Still, he would have liked to get something. It would also have given him some information to go by, about how he felt, or what was going on. Either way, he decided not to send another text and wait for an answer. He knew it would definitely come, sooner or later. He put away his phone and grinned a bit.

He was satisfied, about the date, about how his plan was coming together. Now he should find out what his next step would be. He would've liked to visit Midorima today, but that would be too much. He could try to invite him over for something on Sunday, maybe. Get a first impression on how he took the date-thing. Talk to him in private before school started. Yes. That would be a good idea.

-

On Sunday morning, Midorima opened the cupboard in the kitchen, rummaging through it a bit. Then he sighed, since he couldn't find what he was looking for. He was sure they'd had a broken cup in there, but it was probably long gone by now. Thrown out. Deemed useless. But of course today's lucky item was _a ceramic cup with a broken ear_.

There was no helping it. After a quick breakfast, he headed out to the nearby 100 yen shop, where he bought a cup. Naturally he wouldn't just go ahead and break a good one. He had been doubting about the colour, but just took a plain white one.

Back home he wondered how he could efficiently break the ear off. If he dropped it, it might break altogether. If he tried to break it himself, he might get his hands hurt. Finally, he got a hammer from the tool kit and gently hit the places where the ear and cup joined. The enamel cracked first, then the ceramic, and with only a little effort the ear broke off.

Midorima showed the faintest of smiles at his accomplishment, and right at that moment, he heard the sound of an incoming text message. The thought 'probably Takao' shot through his head, and didn't make him unhappy. Nor did it annoy him.

He picked up his phone and opened the message.

_Hiii Shin-chan! 3  
>Wanna meet up for a one-on-one?<br>I missed practice ;A;_

He read the text a few times over for no particular reason, barely noticing the warm, tingling feeling that originated from his stomach and spread through his limbs. He pushed his glasses up and typed a reply.

_Sure, what time?_

-

Takao grinned. Perfect. He arranged to meet with Midorima at one o'clock at the basketball court in the park. There might be others around that time, but there were a few courts and as it had transpired before, Midorima had the unconscious skill of scaring people away just by looking at them.

It happened once before when Takao arrived first, and he had - politely - asked the others to get out. They refused, seeing no need to move to another court. Takao didn't give in though, but Midorima arrived at the right moment. He just stood there, tall, glaring, sort of magnificent.

'This court has the best orientation. We're using it,' he had declared, stating everything as facts.

The guys had just stood there, before scurrying away like kicked dogs. Takao smirked, resulting in Midorima asking what was so funny. Of course he hadn't replied, but the whole event was just priceless.

The rest of the morning, Takao felt happy. He couldn't concentrate on homework very well, although it had to be done. He was singing along to songs on the radio more than actually solving math questions though, but maybe he could sneakily pick Midorima's notes out of his bag on Monday and just copy the answers real quick.

He was very much looking forward to seeing Midorima again, weirdly so even. He wondered if it was because he had this date yesterday. He realized that he wouldn't exactly mind doing the same things with Midorima, although he wasn't sure if walks in the park were his thing. Basically, these were the kind of everyday items that they didn't talk a lot about. They, being Midorima.

Takao wasn't even certain if it was because he didn't want to talk about it or simply because he didn't talk at all. Another thing that he should add to the list of unlocked achievements. Make Midorima talk about his life. Their one-sided communication couldn't go on forever.  
>He decided to start figuring those things out today.<p>

After lunch Takao left, taking his basketball, a towel and a bottle of water. He wanted to be there before Midorima arrived. He didn't even know why, maybe just to annoy the one who was usually early, maybe because... No, he reconsidered, this time he would come late. He took a roundabout way to get there, anticipating some kind of reaction from his green-haired friend.

_

Midorima was waiting near the court. He'd already done some stretching exercises. There were a few younger guys playing at the court they always used, but they left and continued on another court when they saw him arrive. He'd found it strange that the would just leave, but didn't question it.

He was looking out for Takao to arrive, and when he did his glare shot daggers. He was late.  
>'Takao!' Midorima called out sharply. He knew that he didn't need to remind the other of the problem at hand.<br>'Sorry, Shin-chan,' Takao answered, but his grin didn't fit his words. Besides, Takao was hardly ever sorry.

Takao handed the ball to Midorima.  
>'I really missed going to practice,' Takao said, and he meant it. Midorima could pick up on that. Yet he had nothing to say to him, although a tiny voice inside him spoke the unspeakable 'I missed you there as well.'<p>

Then Takao ran onto the court, taking a defensive position. Midorima nodded and dashed forward as well. They played for a while, rather leisurely. Takao was able to score some points by bypassing Midorima quickly. That reminded the shooter of the fact that Takao was one of the few people who had immediately seen through Kuroko's misdirection.

Which of course meant that nothing prevented Takao to try and achieve the same skill level. He should have the instincts for it as well, and since he was always aware of the entire court, it could prove to be a great asset if he could accomplish it.

During the game, Midorima's thoughts were focused on playing. Simply figuring out the most efficient way to move, shoot, avoid the ball being stolen. He was actually having fun, even though he seemed too focused for an outsider to see. Although Takao must see it, since he was obviously enjoying himself.

Even though one on one plays weren't Midorima's strong suit, his ability to shoot from anywhere and never miss gave him a distinct advantage either way, and so he had a decent lead points-wise when Takao called for a break.

_

'Ahh, Shin-chan's taking the lead again,' he said in a mock-annoyed voice.  
>'Of course,' Midorima answered, pushing his glasses up again. Takao watched as his friend wiped his face with a towel and drank some water.<p>

He then drank a little as well and sat down in the middle of the court. He wanted to say something but for some reason he wasn't sure what. He didn't want it to be too obvious that he was fishing for reactions. And he had thought of many questions that he could ask, although those would be pretty random to ask right now. It was important to take the right steps.

He glanced at Midorima as he crouched down beside him and saw how clear and bright his green eyes were in the daylight, surrounded by fairly long lashes. He gulped. It was strange for him to get nervous around anyone. This wouldn't do, he thought, so he shook his head.

Then he suddenly got an idea.  
>'Hey, you know? The lady at the cafe yesterday totally digged me.' He put on a confident grin for Midorima to see. Midorima frowned a bit.<br>'What?'

'I said, she digged me! I just smiled at her and she started blushing!' Midorima's frown relaxed just a little. Takao had come to enjoy watching all the small changes, the direction in which those green eyes looked, the small and useless movements his hands made. It was no longer a boring movie, but more of an intricate game. After all, nothing was without meaning.

'That's ridiculous, Takao. Maybe she was actually scared.' Naturally, Takao noticed the doubt in his friend's voice, the look he got as if to confirm what he had just said. It was true that Takao was usually more grinning than smiling, but he found out that his smile worked miracles, so maybe he should just try it on Midorima there and then.

'No, really. Look, I'll smile at you too, Shin-chan.' So he put it on again. Although this time maybe he was trying a little bit too consciously. Midorima's frown just got deeper, and he seemed to back away a little. But at the same time the muscles around his mouth seemed to relax, adding a touch of surprise to his expression. Plus, he inhaled.

Takao could only think of that as a good thing, and his face returned to his usual grin.  
>'What do you think?' He leaned in a bit closer, observing his friend. This time, Midorima stood his ground.<br>'It's a smile, I guess.' He pushed his glasses up while blinking slowly, but Takao noticed that he was just regaining his composure.

'If you come with me next time I can show you, if you want. At the cafe.'  
>'I have no interest in that, Takao.' Midorima was back to his generic deflective manner of speech. And by saying how little interest he had, Takao knew exactly what he meant. Maybe he'd like to see it, but maybe not.<p>

'Fine,' Takao said. Of course he had not expected anything else as answer, but still. He was observing his friend like never before, taking in each and every change in expression. The more he watched him, the more he began to spot the smallest changes.

He took notice of the exact length of Midorima's hair, the way his mouth opened a little while he breathed, the soft pink colour of his lips. Then his attention moved to Midorima's hands. Rather big, with long fingers, finely manicured nails. They were clean and rosy with white ends and simply perfect.

How was it possible for a man to have such perfect hands? But they were by no means girly, they looked far too strong for that. Takao had to suppress the line of thought as to what it would feel like to be touched by those hands.

'Takao,' his friend called out, rousing him from his musings.  
>'Yes?' Takao was a bit confused, if just for a second.<br>'You want to go another round?' Hmm. Takao took a moment to answer. He didn't feel like playing anymore, but he didn't really want to part ways yet.  
>'Not really,' he said, 'but I don't feel like going home already.'<p>

Midorima stood up and sighed.  
>'I see you didn't bring a jacket. You'll get a cold like this, so you can come over to my place.'<br>For some reason, Takao's heart jumped. Of course, logically speaking, this was the best option. Although it was rare for Midorima to invite him over. Naturally Midorima had no ulterior motives, but it still made Takao happy.

Plus, it brought him closer to his goal of finding out things about his friend. He'd been at his home before, but now he'd be extra vigilant.  
>'That seems like a plan,' Takao said, getting up.<br>'Did you walk over here, Shin-chan?'  
>'I ran.' No surprise there either, although it wasn't very far from Midorima's place to the park. It was also a way to get a quick and easy warm-up, even if it was just for a match for fun.<p>

'Of course.' Takao grinned at Midorima. He took his bike and they walked to Midorima's place. There was never anyone home on Sunday afternoons, so there would be no hassle and they would not disturb anyone.

They took off their shoes in the hallway and put them to the side. Midorima opened an small overhead closet from which he took a pair of slippers they kept for guests. Takao thanked him and put them on. They were a bit small, but this was the pair he had used before.

'Your house is always so neat, Shin-chan,' Takao said. Midorima wasn't sure if that was something to be impressed about, he didn't think of his own place as especially clean or neat, but that may have been because he was so used to it.  
>'It's the same as last time, isn't it?'<p>

Takao looked around for a moment. Midorima was waiting by the foot of the stairs, his hand loosely on the wooden rail.  
>'I wouldn't know exactly,' Takao admitted. 'Maybe if I really paid attention to everything I would remember.' He then followed his friend upstairs to Midorima's room.<p>

The house was fairly modern, although distinctly Japanese elements were kept. As for Midorima's room, it had a floor instead of tatami, and he had a bed, but there was also a round low table in the middle of the room. On the work desk, Takao spotted the biology homework they had to finish by Monday. It looked finished. His own, on the other hand, was still in his bag, untouched.

'Hey, can I borrow this?' He tried asking, picking up the homework papers.  
>'No. Make it by yourself,' Midorima said with his usual glare.<br>'Ugh. Why not? I hate homework. It's so boring!' Takao put them down again, disappointed.  
>'It's something that needs to be done. There is nothing you will learn from copying mine.'<p>

Takao pouted. As if there was something I'd learn if I did make it on my own, he thought. If a subject didn't interest you, you would forget what you studied either way.

'Kise does it,' he said, a little bit annoyed.  
>'No, you're wrong,' Midorima replied, without thinking. This was something he had figured out a long time ago, when Kise had joined their team at Teikou middle school.<br>'What Kise does is copying physical moves. You can only learn something physical by doing it. Copying someone else's answers does not make you copy their intelligence, only their words.'

That made sense, Takao thought. And if Kise had been able to copy intelligence, he would have done it a long time ago and he would have been even more fearsome than he already was.  
>Midorima put his bag away and took a new t-shirt out of the closet. Next, he looked at Takao, obviously judging him about something.<p>

Takao gulped. 'What is it, Shin-chan?' His grin was a little bit off now, since he didn't really like it when Midorima looked at him like that. It reminded him of when they first met, when Midorima had looked at everyone as if they were dirty insects. His aura had been so humiliating that probably half of the team got traumatized by it.

'You should change as well. You smell.'  
>'What?'<br>'Maybe a shower would be even better,' his friend continued. Takao's heartbeat sped up. He was just too taken aback to give a decent reaction. Instead, he fell silent with an expression of disbelief on his face.

'Come.'

Wait, what? What was going on? For a moment, he couldn't think straight and his dreams and desires mixed up with reality. A vivid image of Midorima undressing showed up before his mind's eye, then Midorima getting closer to him, then...

He shook his head. There was no way that this was included in Midorima's intentions. No way, no way! Snap out of it, he told himself. Stay cool. This reality is actually an opportunity. Take it. His face returned back to normal.

Takao pulled up his t-shirt and sniffed.  
>'You're right, I smell,' he said next, openly accepting the criticism and thus making it a plausible course of action to accept the offer of a shower.<p>

'I'll borrow you some clothes,' Midorima said while taking a pair of sweatpants and a shirt out of his closet. Once in the bathroom, he also put a towel ready.  
>'Thanks,' Takao nodded.<p>

Naturally, it had been too much to expect they'd shower together in a private situation. But still, Takao preferred to think of this as a good thing. And maybe he could play another card in this game. Taking opportunities was important after all.

-

Midorima waited in his room while Takao took a shower. He could hear the water running, and looked forward to his turn. He didn't like being sweaty, and he couldn't very well take a shower and not offer the same to Takao. Even if he didn't really smell as bad as he had pretended.

In fact, Takao used some brand of deodorant that was quite strong. It did not conceal the smell of sweat completely of course, especially not after a match, but it mingled and the combined odour wasn't so bad. It just made him think of the times when Takao came to him after a match, grinning widely.

Although that was what he thought, he would never admit that he noticed such trivial things.  
>He put his homework back in his schoolbag and went downstairs to take some drinks. There wasn't much to choose from, so he just took both green tea and water and two glasses.<p>

Somehow he felt that Takao had been behaving a little bit odd today. He didn't want to think too much about it, again, but maybe it had to do with the date. Or maybe he only noticed because he had been so bothered by that thing. He kind of wanted to know what happened, but he also didn't.

Back in his room, he sat down on his bed and drank a glass of water. He couldn't explain why he had such double feelings about something, and so he'd rather avoid it than regret bringing it up. He picked up a book, but before he could finish even one page, he heard the door of the bathroom open and close.

Next thing he knew, Takao showed up in his room with the provided towel wrapped around his waist, and the clothes Midorima had given him folded over his arm. He was grinning as always.

'Done! I'll just change here, so you can go already, Shin-chan!' For a moment that seemed to last ridiculously long, Midorima didn't know what to say or where to look. So he just looked away.

'Alright.' He got up and wanted to hurry towards the bathroom, but Takao didn't let him.  
>'Hey, I used your shampoo, that's okay, right?'<p>

When he looked at Takao, his gaze got caught in those light silvery grey eyes. They seemed to sparkle. His hair was wet, sticking to his forehead, the ends dripping small droplets that fell on his face. Midorima's mouth went dry in an instant.

'Thats... fine,' he managed to say, but only barely. As he passed Takao, he could smell the shampoo, although it seemed to smell much better on him than on himself. As he closed the door, he saw Takao drop the towel on the floor and caught a glimpse of his full naked figure.

_

Takao grinned, but inside he was laughing loudly. That part of his plan had worked perfectly. This was a great way to make Midorima uneasy. He could tell that his green-haired friend was doing his best to appear unshaken, but there were many things that betrayed him. He had been shocked, but not grossed out. Ashamed too, but possible attracted. For a moment, his expression had been fairly close to that of the lady at the coffee shop, and Takao hadn't even smiled!

This was fun, Takao thought. Lots of fun! And it made him want more, much more. More of those small reactions, emotions, more fun, more Midorima.


	2. Chapter 2

Midorima stripped himself of his damp clothes and stepped into the shower area. The floor and part of the wall was still wet. He didn't really like it when the shower had been used before him, but he often enough had no choice. As he turned the tap open, a long sigh escaped from his lips.

_What was that all about?_ The events from a moment ago were replaying in front of him. Did Takao drop his towel like that on purpose? He thought so. It wouldn't be strange for the black-haired point guard to play a prank like that. Although it wasn't really a prank either...

But in that case, why did he do it? If there even was a reason. There had to be, Midorima thought while shampooing his hair. He believed that everything had a meaning, at least. Takao liked to tease Midorima at times, but usually not like this. Or in the shower.

What bothered the shooter most was the fact that he had been shocked to see Takao's naked back. He also wasn't sure why that was, since they had been showering in the school's public showers together ever since they both joined the basketball team. It was never awkward or strange, so why was he so startled to see it here and now? Maybe it was only because this was at home, and he was not used to or prepared for it? But that too seemed like an excuse.

Thinking about it gave him a strange feeling, something fuzzy and confusing stirred in stomach. He turned the temperature down a bit, feeling too hot under the spray of warm water. He quickly washed himself, tried to forget what he saw. Only he couldn't forget, and he wasn't sure how to face Takao after an event like that.

After drying himself, he put on the clothes he had brought with him. It was just a plain sweater and loose trousers, easy wear to sit at home. Unlike Takao, he used the hairdryer as well. Not only because he didn't want to have wet hair, but also because it gave him some more time to get his thoughts in order.

When he was done with everything, he looked at himself in the mirror. He smiled at himself, just to try, but the reflection didn't please him all that much. It didn't look like him. So he gave up and went back to his standard neutral expression.

When he got back to his room, he found Takao lying on his bed, looking through a magazine from about a year ago, one of those which featured the regional middle and high school teams.  
>'Welcome back, Shin-chan,' Takao said, sitting up. The clothes he wore were not oversized, but simply too big. Even the pants needed a tight knot of the strings to actually fit.<br>He held out the magazine.  
>'This is fun! Who scribbled all these notes?'<p>

Midorima stepped closer, frowning a little. It must be the one with the descriptions of the Teikou team members.  
>'Kise. Don't read that, Takao.' He made an attempt to take it away from Takao, but the other was quick enough to move it out of reach.<br>'No way, this is golden.' Takao moved back on the bed and read more.

Midorima scowled, but let him be.  
>'Midorima Shintarou makes a stern impression... <em>'cause he's a glasses nerd...<em>' Takao read out loud and started laughing. Midorima's eyes widened. That damn Kise! That was the reason why he kept this magazine!

He almost jumped on the bed and pushed Takao's arms down with ease. The shorter boy wasn't even resisting, he was too busy laughing.  
>'Haha... Shin-chan! This... ' Midorima sighed and let go. It was his fault for actually keeping the magazine. Maybe he had kept it because it reminded him of the time during middle school when the Generation of Miracles was not only a great team, but also a fun group of people who liked the same sports and were passionate about it.<p>

'Takao,' he said, softer than usual. Takao must have picked up on it, because he stopped laughing, and held his head a bit to the side, his eyes questioning Midorima.  
>'Don't ever tell anyone.'<br>'What?' Takao said, confused, 'I... of course.'

-

The slightest hint of a smile lingered at the corners of Midorima's lips, but his eyes were shiny and seemed sad. Takao blinked. He didn't understand. His heart felt heavy, he wasn't sure if he should feel guilty or not. It felt as if he'd intruded somewhere where he didn't belong. Somewhere private.

He licked his lips a little as they had turned dry. Then, Midorima looked at him.  
>'You can read it, just... keep it to yourself.' Takao nodded, unable to reply.<br>Midorima slipped off the bed and poured himself some green tea.  
>'You want some?' he asked. Takao needed a moment to recover.<p>

'Yes please,' he answered. He watched how Midorima filled their glasses with an almost exact equal amount. _Glasses nerd_. The thought made him giggle a bit. Midorima didn't get angry or annoyed about it, but just handed him his glass.

'Alright then, let's see,' Takao said with a grin. Midorima surprised him by joining him, sitting fairly close to him while he checked out the other players.  
>Next he read about Kise, even though he was the one who scribbled things in there, he himself had some notes as well, in a different handwriting. No, two.<br>'Kise Ryouta... _stupid fashion model_... _his fangirls are annoying_...' Takao laughed.

'It's true, isn't it? Who wrote this?'  
>'Aomine, and Kuroko. And it is true. His fangirls were especially loud, even during practice.' Midorima scowled at the memory. It made Takao giggle. He could indeed imagine that even now, Kasamatsu would get angry at Kise about that.<p>

Next he looked at Aomine's piece.  
>'<em>Ahomine<em>.' His name was partly scratched over and corrected. 'Ace of the Teikou team... _boob-loving pervert_... ' That wasn't a secret, he had caught rumours of how Aomine was often keeping a gravure idol magazine in his sports bag and got scolded for it.

'Murasakibara_CCHI_... _candy eating giant... cawcaw_... Huh?' He glanced at Midorima.  
>'Oh, Kise had this period where he teased Murasakibara by making crow noises, since he hates that sound.' That caused a another laugh. It seemed strange that such a tall guy would bother with something like crows.<br>'I actually like crows,' Takao said, 'unless they caw-caw in front of my window in the morning.'

Midorima seemed to agree on that point, although he just nodded.  
>'Akashi... I've wondered about him... <em>scary leader-sama *0*... please don't kill me... omg, burn this page<em>... What?' Takao looked at Midorima again for more explanation. The green-haired shooter sighed.

'This is why I'm keeping the magazine.'  
>'Shouldn't you burn it then?'<br>'Akashi wouldn't kill anyone for this, although he wouldn't like it. But it's true, in a way.'  
>'How so?'<p>

Midorima looked away for a bit, thinking to himself. Takao drank a bit meanwhile.  
>'Well, Akashi... has an ability that strikes fear in the hearts of his opponents. He's destructive. He does anything to reach his goal.' Midorima's voice sounded serious, so Takao didn't laugh. He just watched, waiting for Midorima to tell him more, but he doesn't.<p>

Even so, he became aware of how much he liked being with him like this. Sitting together on the bed, reading something, talking a bit. Midorima pushed his glasses back up. Then, Takao noticed something. Kuroko wasn't mentioned.

'Shin-chan? How come Kuroko is not in here?' Midorima glanced at the pages of the magazine. But he was sure they had seen Kuroko play that time. Or hadn't they?  
>'Hmm, maybe they didn't notice him. As long as Kuroko doesn't use his skills, he's practically invisible.' Midorima didn't remember what had happened at the time, but it didn't matter all that much.<p>

'Ahh, I want to be in a magazine too!' Takao complained. Midorima didn't understand what the fuss was all about, he wasn't all that happy about being featured. He took the magazine from Takao and scowled when he looked at the pictures in there. Pictures were so static, only Kise looked like the actual person somehow. The others, including himself, had something awkward, either in their face or in their pose.

'Why would you want that?' Midorima asked, without looking up.  
>'Huh?' Takao looked at Midorima, thinking of an answer. 'Because it's cool? You're like, sort of famous... or well, important.' Takao sounded a bit younger, more admiring.<p>

'Famous?' This made Midorima think. The shooter sometimes forgot that people looked up to him and the others, that everyone had someone they look up to.  
>It's true that they were well-known, but Shuutoku was also a famed team when it came to high school basketball.<p>

'Do you want to be famous, Takao?' The black-haired boy looked at his friend, trying to spot something in his bright green eyes. They seemed a bit darker, clouded by uncertainties that Takao knew nothing about.  
>'I don't know. But I think it would be nice, even if it was just once. I mean, it's not about being famous, but about getting recognition for something that you've done, or what you're good at.'<p>

Midorima glanced back at him now, a little surprised. Takao guessed that he hadn't thought of it that way, but that was Midorima... he never really considered things that way, just because he had been in the Teikou team. Because he had seen them change, seen how they lost their purity because they became too strong.

'I see,' he said, and he smiled. It was faint, weak, but a smile nonetheless. Not the kind of smile he rarely had on the court, but a gentle understanding smile. Takao blinked, glad that his friend was looking away, since he didn't know what his own face was expressing right now. What he did know was that his heart jumped.

'Shuutoku is a well-known team. Maybe they'll feature you some day,' Midorima continued.  
>Although the green-haired shooter was just stating a possibility, they way he said it was so vastly different from his usual cold way of speaking that Takao almost thought he was dreaming. He didn't think he'd heard this comforting tone in Midorima's voice before.<p>

'Yes, who knows,' he said softly, looking down. He found out that he loved that gentleness, but he hadn't been prepared at all. This should all be a part of his plan, but if he showed any weaknesses here, it would lose its meaning! He had to get back on top of the situation, if he wanted everything to go as he planned.

'I'll tell them all your secrets, Shin-chan!' he said, and put a grin on his face.  
>'Don't you dare,' Midorima snapped back at him.<br>'Shin-chan... I don't even know your secrets,' Takao replied, looking apologetic. That was true at least. Everyone knew about his ridiculous obsession with horoscopes and lucky items, or with protecting and caring for his left hand. To Midorima, these were all natural, and even if people thought it was weird, he didn't care at all.

Takao would like to know some secrets though, but he was prepared to be patient. He thought that this afternoon had brought some progress at least, since he had pretty much gotten what he wanted, and more.

After a while, Takao returned back home. They said goodbye, and Takao tried one last time to see if he could borrow Midorima's homework, but the taller boy wouldn't give in to his pleading.

'See you tomorrow!' Takao shouted, and waved. Midorima never waved back, he just nodded and watched for... Takao started counting, one, two, three seconds before Midorima closed the door. That wasn't too shabby, actually. He decided then that he'd count the seconds every time he left.

-

After he had closed the door, Midorima breathed in and out slowly, leaning against the wall, his eyes closed. He wondered why he felt so drained. He opened his eyes, took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. Sometimes, being with people tired him out, but that usually didn't happen with Takao.

He grumbled as he remembered Takao dropping his towel to the floor. It had seemed so dual, both innocent, as if it was a result of clumsiness, but the timing was too perfect. It was planned, he was certain of it. Takao wasn't clumsy, but he was cunning. He had, most probably, done it on purpose.

Yet, Midorima was baffled as to why he'd do something like that. Usually, Takao wouldn't shy away from laughing loudly when Midorima did or said something that he considered funny, so either this wasn't funny, or... what actually? Why would Takao purposefully expose so much bare skin?

Midorima couldn't figure it out, his thoughts were just making circles. He went back to his room, telling himself that it didn't matter. Although he couldn't very well escape it when he smelled the shampoo in his room, and it only reminded him of what had happened before. He went to lie down on his bed for a few minutes, then he drank another glass of water. He had already finished all of his homework, so he settled for some reading before dinner.

In the evening, he ended up helping his little sister with her homework. Compared to letting others copy his own, this was perfectly acceptable. He was fairly good at explaining things as well, so after some assistance, she could finish the rest on her own.

Midorima prepared his schoolbag carefully, making sure that he had everything in there, neatly put away by subject. He stretched and yawned. Better to go to bed early, he thought. He ate some mandarin oranges while watching TV, and ended his evening with some more reading before he put on his pajamas and went to bed.

He checked if he had set his alarm, and turned around. He fell asleep pretty fast this time, and slept well through the night, although he had a dream where Takao was somehow living in his room, but by the time he woke up, he did not remember it.

-

On Monday morning, Takao woke up with a cheerful feeling. He hummed a song as he hopped down the stairs, already wearing his uniform. He hurried because he wanted to arrive at school early today. After all, he had set things in motion, but he couldn't predict what would happen and he wanted to be there when it did.

All he hoped for is that something would happen, and that he'd be able to see some more of Midorima's rare expressions. Once he got at school, he walked slowly through the crowd of students, tried to pick up on things that were out of the ordinary. So far, he was disappointed, but then again, the day only just started and it wasn't as if he'd created an enormous scandal.

He'd only gone on a date. Besides, he didn't see the girl yet. Some of her friends were there already, but not her. Takao shrugged and went to look for Midorima. There were a few places where he might find him easily. If he came very early, he sometimes snuck in some morning practice in the gym.

Although that wasn't the case today, but another option was the library. Midorima liked books, even just looking at them interested him. Takao had noticed this when he had run into Midorima in a book store. However, he didn't go say hi immediately. First, he observed his friend for a bit. In a way, observing was one of the few ways Takao had to find out things about Midorima's character and habits.

On that particular day, he had learnt about Midorima's little notebook. It was a simple grey one, with a tiny pen attached to it, and apparently Midorima carried it with him at all times. At the bookstore, Midorima was taking out some books, looking at their cover, and putting them back. For two of them, he took out his notebook and wrote something down, Takao assumed that it must be the title and name of the author, to memorize them and maybe borrow the books later at the library.

Takao never mentioned anything about this to Midorima. The fact that he knew about it was one of his precious little secrets. It wasn't even anything important, but these were the small things that mattered, that made Midorima who he was, made him human.

In the hallway he encountered Miyajima.  
>'Goodmorning,' Takao greeted him with a grin.<br>'Takao!' Miyajima stopped him in his tracks. 'Hey, did you hear about Saturday's training?'  
>Takao was a little surprised. He kind of did, but... Did something out of the ordinary happen?<br>'Eh, not really. Should I?'

Miyajima looked around and pulled Takao to the side of the hallway. Why so secretive, Takao wondered.  
>'Something was off about Midorima,' Miyajima said, and even at the sound of that name, Takao's heart made a bit of a jump. Seconds later, his brain started processing this information faster than Miyajima could tell his story.<p>

'Oh? What could that be?' Takao asked, acting innocent.  
>'Well... he missed a pass, first of all. He seemed out of it, so the coach benched him for a while. But then he asked to be put back on the court and... ' Miyajima looked into Takao's eyes. Good thing he didn't see through them into his soul, or he would have seen the most devilish of grins.<p>

'He played like a beast, Takao. I know they call the Generation of Miracles a team of monsters, but I've never seen Midorima like that,' Miyajima explained, sort of worried, but more excited to be talking about this to a guy who wasn't there.  
>'You should have seen it, he was... ruthless.'<p>

'Seriously? Damn, I can't believe I missed that!' Takai said, not untrue. He would have loved to see it, but if he had been there, that episode wouldn't even have happened. Or so he liked to believe. Well, he was pretty certain that there really could be only one thing that bothered Midorima enough to miss passes and act out of character. Only one thing, and it made him incredibly happy, cause it meant that he had cared. It didn't matter in what way, just that he did was enough by far.

'Yeah man,' Miyajima said, 'it was weird. Anyway, gotta go! Catch you later!'  
>'Later,' Takao said, nearly hopping through the hallway afterwards. Some people stared at him, but he didn't give a damn. The day had gotten a perfect start after all. But of course, he wouldn't ask Midorima about it. This was just another of those things that he would treasure.<p>

Surprisingly, Midorima came in quite late. By the time, Takao had just settled in class and scrolled through twitter on his phone. It wasn't as if anything interested him much on there, but he just had nothing better to do.

-

Takao didn't even look up as Midorima entered the classroom. Conversely, Midorima only clicked his tongue as he noticed his friend busy on his phone. He just didn't understand why people liked staring at a screen so much, checking up on everyone all the time. It's as if there was no privacy anymore in this whole world and everyone needed to know whatever the other was doing.

That idiot had even gotten Midorima so far as to make his own account as well, but Midorima hardly ever used it. Sometimes he checked it while riding the train, but basically he didn't care much and didn't understand why he should.

As he put down his schoolbag on his desk, Takao looked up and shouted his name.  
>'Shin-chan! You're late!'<br>'I'm not late. It's still... 7 minutes before the bell rings.' Takao laughed.  
>'That's late, for you,' the boy replied. He got up and came over, putting his cell phone away.<p>

'Hey, I made my homework, but it was hard...'  
>'I'm not giving you mine.' Midorima was used to these things, so he just answered instantly. And why was Takao so persistent about this? Wouldn't he give up some day if he kept being refused?<p>

'I wasn't going to ask that, actually,' Takao said. Midorima looked at him, slightly surprised. What was this? Takao being responsible?  
>'Could you check it? We only have to hand it in this afternoon.' Midorima blinked. Basically, Takao was planning not to leech off him, but to ask for help like a decent person? That was something new...<p>

The green-haired shooter pushed his glasses up, looking down at first, but then finally facing Takao. 'Alright. I'll look at it during lunch break.'  
>'Yay! Thanks, Shin-chan.' Midorima wanted to sigh, but as he saw a smile unfold on Takao's face, his breath got stuck in his throat for a moment. He coughed, looking away.<p>

What was that? Unlike his usual grin, there had been an actual smile. Not the expression of a manipulative grinning bastard, but a real, honest smile. Something must be wrong with Takao. Maybe he was getting sick.

'Are you ok?' He finally asked, doubtful, looking at his friend, inspecting him.  
>'Never better,' Takao replied. Then it struck him... maybe this was some kind of afterglow from the date... maybe something else happened. After all, Takao had been at school early, he deduced, and his mood was too good for a monday morning.<p>

Whatever it was, something must have happened. The bell rang and Takao returned to his seat obediently. Midorima sat down, but during the first hours of class he couldn't very well let the matter go. They could've exchanged numbers, they could be texting each other, they could have...

He shook his head. Don't think about such things, that's just awkward. He noticed he'd been drawing circles in his notebook, and got annoyed at himself. Since it was pencil, he could erase the lines, but just like some traces remained, that didn't erase the subject of his worries. 


	3. Chapter 3

The bell rang for lunch break and Takao shoved his chair over to Midorima's table, as usual. He noticed his taller friend closing his notes quickly and putting them away inside his desk. Why did he do that, Takao wondered. Was there something he wanted to hide? He couldn't very well imagine that, though, so he focused on pulling out a grin.

'Food first, homework later,' he said. Midorima just nodded. Otherwise, nothing was off during lunch. Takao talked, Midorima listened and made uninterested noises. The shooter had a tendency to eat fairly slowly (and also a surprisingly large amount, although maybe it wasn't so strange considering his size and active lifestyle), so even if Takao talked lots while eating, they still finished their food at about the same time.

Takao peeked at Midorima's lunchbox, he spotted a leftover red radish. It was rare for him to leave anything uneaten, he was pretty well-educated in eating everything, even things he didn't like.

Takao had never paid such close attention to what he ate exactly, but couldn't remember him saying that he didn't like this or that - except for natto. The pungent smell did have a less-than-appetising effect, Takao admitted. He couldn't think of anyone who liked natto, so that wasn't anything special. So what about the radish?

'Shin-chan, do radishes bring bad luck today?'  
>'Hm?' Midorima looked up from his lunchbox. He blinked, as if he wasn't paying attention.<br>'No.'  
>'I thought you ate everything?' Takao asked then. It could take quite some effort to get valuable information from Midorima. He would make a great secret agent with that skill.<br>'I don't like them much when they're... whole.'

The way Midorima glanced aside, as if this was something to be ashamed of, or a weakness of him as a person made Takao's mouth dry. This guy was priceless, he thought. Pricelessly stubborn and stupid, smart and strict but also... cute.

'Takao!' A voice shook him up from his musings. A classmate was gesturing near the doorway.  
>'He's over there,' the boy said, pointing towards them.<br>'Thank you.' The girl Takao had his date with came in, and many heads turned to look. Takao panicked a little. He wasn't sure if this was good or bad, and he wasn't prepared at all.

'Hello, Takao.' she said. Then she directed her gaze at Midorima. She greeted him as well, but then talked to Takao again. Within the next few seconds Takao had regained his composure and was trying to divide his attention between listening to her, and watching Midorima's facial expressions.

She talked a bit about nothing, and said she'd come watch practice some time. Takao was friendly to her and answered that, yes, she should definitely come. Those things made Midorima's frown deeper, until he turned his head away and let an inaudible sigh escape. Inaudible didn't mean that Takao didn't pick up on it though, and he had to try his best not to laugh about it.

'Hey, maybe we can eat lunch together some time?' she asked after she said she'd be heading out cause her friend was waiting for her in the hallway.  
>'Yeah, I guess we can do that,' Takao agreed. He watched as she walked away, and then turned to Midorima again.<p>

His green-haired friend was still looking away with a frown.  
>'Sorry about that,' he said. His grin faded a bit. He could laugh about it, but he didn't feel as if he should. The other slowly turned his head, breathing in deeply at the same time.<br>'That's the girl?' Midorima asked. This time he sounded sharper, although the overall tone of the question wasn't mean.

'Yup,' Takao answered. There wasn't much more to say.  
>'If you eat lunch with her, don't do it here.' Takao gulped, then nodded. There was something strangely defensive about this that didn't seem right. A part of him wanted to say something like <em><em>'But Shin-chan, I don't want to eat lunch with her.'<em>_ Still, that was impossible. He couldn't explain his reason behind it without immediately revealing his little plan.

A bit longer, he told himself. But he believed he saw something in Midorima's bright green eyes that he hoped to see a little bit more of, something that would help him figure out how he could proceed his plans. Something that might be called jealousy.

'...o.'  
>'Takao.' Midorima called out to him, but he seemed to be spacing out. Maybe that was another effect of hanging around with girls. If so, it wouldn't do anyone any good, he thought.<br>'Oh, sorry.' Takao's grey eyes focused again, his apology honest.  
>'Take out your homework, if you want me to correct it.'<p>

'Right,' the black-haired boy answered, getting up.  
>Midorima took the sheets of paper and read the contents quietly. Takao sat on his chair and leaned back, balancing on two legs. This was one of Takao's habits that annoyed him a bit, but not enough to say something about it. After all, he was not his mother, and if he fell he'd learn to be more careful.<p>

The more he read of Takao's homework, the deeper his frown became, even though he was unaware of it. Finally couldn't bear it anymore. He nearly threw the homework on the desk before him.

'Did you even check your handbook?' He asked in a strict voice.  
>'Huh?' Takao answered, lowering his chair back on four legs.<br>'I hope you realise that most of the answers can be found in there, so I wonder how you manage to make mistakes like this,' Midorima said, half angry, half confused.

'Wha... really?'  
>The shooter sighed. Sometimes Takao could be quite stupid. Especially for a guy who could be really sharp and cunning too, unlike Kise, who was mainly spaced-out when it came to studying.<br>'Really. Don't tell me you didn't have it at home?'

Takao laughed, then scratched his head. That was probably a yes. What a pain... Why did he have to put up with this, just because he was good at biology, and __did__ remember to take his handbook, and did actually __study__ his subjects? Why couldn't others just do the same?  
>Midorima shot a piercing glare at Takao, who by now understood looks like that pretty well.<p>

But he wasn't lying, since Takao had to rummage through his desk contents in order to find his biology book. How the heck did he plan to make homework without the subject matter at hand? Midorima shook his head slightly. Let it be, he told himself.

Using the handbook as guidance, Midorima explained Takao how he should solve the questions he'd answered completely incorrect. In the end, they re-wrote the entire homework. But at least now he'd get a good grade, and maybe he'd learned his lesson.

Near the end, Takao put down his pen and looked at Midorima.  
>'Shin-chan,' he said in a serious voice which caught got Midorima's attention, rare as it was.<br>'Thank you.'

Midorima looked down, pushing his glasses up. He didn't know what to say to things like that. That was one reason why he didn't like to help people, he just wasn't sure what to do with gratitude. He nodded.

'I know you don't like doing this,' Takao continued, 'so...' And then he fell silent. The silence continued until it became sort of awkward. But it wasn't as if nothing was going on durint that time.

Midorima found himself pushed into a corner by conflicting thoughts. It's true that before, he had told Takao that he didn't like helping out with homework, and that Takao should make his own homework, but another side of him didn't mind helping him out at all. Yet he couldn't say it, the words wouldn't come out either way. And so their silence was broken by the school bell.

Takao grinned. 'Right on time! Next time I'll make sure to take my books home!' He took his stuff and his chair and went back to his own seat. Like nothing ever happened, maybe for Takao that was true. As for Midorima, something was weighing down on his heart. He just had no idea what it was.

-

There was no basketball practice on Monday, but even so the coach had insisted on doing running daily, so after classed ended Takao followed Midorima to the dressing rooms.  
>They used the third one, the other two were in use by other sports club teams, and it was quite busy around the area.<p>

As he looked at Midorima's broad back, he wondered if the other had been bothered by what happened during lunch. It had seemed that the shooter was quieter than usual, but exactly because he already said so little, it was hard to tell. Still, Takao couldn't escape the feeling that something was a little off.

Once inside the dressing rooms, Takao mechanically changed into training gear, until he noticed Midorima was staring at him from aside. He blinked and then grinned.  
>'What's up, Shin-chan?' Midorima kept looking before he averted his gaze.<br>'Nothing. Just that you've been surprisingly quiet.'

Takao felt that he had to correct himself here, in order for his plans to succeed.  
>'Oh, have I? Geez, I dunno! Does that mean you don't like it, then?'<br>'I didn't say that,' Midorima snapped back, adjusting his glasses.  
>Takao laughed, glad to be there, glad to hear his friend snap at him. Somewhere in a corner of his mind, he hoped that this could go on forever.<p>

Before going out, leaning against the lockers, he watched how Midorima put his neatly folded uniform in his locker and smiled a little. His meticulous side was rather cute. Not as ridiculous as his obsession with lucky items, but definitely a part of him that would never change.

'Let's go, Takao,' Midorima said. Habitually. Same as usual. But he said it. Just that made Takao sort of happy, since it meant that the other counted on him. He knew Takao would follow, and counted on him to do so. Just like in a match, where Midorima was more of a solo player, but even he needed to depend on others in order to get the ball.

Not so for running practice, but still Midorima called on Takao to be there, to keep up with him. And so Takao did his best to fulfil those expectations, partly for the team, partly for his own pride, but also for Midorima's approval.

In a few steps Takao was walking beside Midorima. Glancing at his face, he saw the usual expression of serious determination that he displayed for practice, or for tests. The sunlight lighted up his bright green irises and even highlighted his long lashes. His eyebrows shaped a slight frown, his mouth was a straight, stern line.

Takao grinned again. So far everything was going well, and Midorima was right next to him, ready to start running off on the field track while the sun set slowly. Unfortunately, over a long distance, Takao couldn't keep up with him. His legs started to object and he had to back down, while Midorima's long legs carried him further away in a steady pace.

-

Midorima took off his glasses and wiped the sweat off his face. Next to him, Takao did the same by burying his entire face in a towel. His longish black hair was wet near his ears and in his neck, but Takao usually forgot to dry that part. Well, Midorima thought, it didn't matter if he'd shower anyway.

He stuffed the small towel away and took a big one out of his closet. Next he grabbed a basket and put his neatly folded uniform in it, to leave it outside of the shower space. As he closed his locker again, Takao threw his own uniform inside the basket. He didn't have the habit to fold his clothes, so they were just humble-jumble, a sleeve loosely hanging down.

Midorima glared at him without saying anything. He didn't really need to, this happened quite often, but Takao probably would never stop intruding anyway.  
>'Ah, come on. It's busy, and if there's no space left in the rack, I'd have to put mine on the floor and then it gets wet!'<p>

The green-haired shooter sighed. 'At least put your sleeve inside the basket.'  
>Takao grinned and obeyed. Always the same with this guy. Together they headed over to the shower area, and it was indeed crowded. They were lucky to have so many showers at school, because even now there were still a few spaces free, and people quickly left and entered either way.<p>

As he undressed, Midorima was reminded of the events on Sunday afternoon. He glanced at Takao, who was pulling down his pants. Nothing was off at the moment, they were just standing next to each other, but facing away from the other. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing to waste time thinking about.

But again, he couldn't escape the thought entirely and felt a little discomforted. He put away his damp training clothes and headed to the shower area. Before letting the water run, he took off his glasses, and left them on a bench.

The floor was wet and cold. He blinked, but of course the fuzzy view didn't get any less fuzzy. Warm water gushed out of the shower head when he pushed the button on the wall. A person appeared next to him, he could barely make out who it was but after showering so often when basketball practice was over, he recognised Takao by his movements and habits.

And he was hard to miss, especially when he started humming the weirdest songs during his shower. Midorima started washing. He had realized that taking showers after sport activities was either a bothersome thing, or some sort of ritual. For him, he'd preferred to see it as the latter.

Warm water was soothing, the simple physical act of washing oneself worked relaxing. Just following the same order every time. Precise and correct. Right arm, chest, back, right leg, left leg, left arm, neck.

Beside him, Takao hummed some pop song from a few years ago.  
>'Shin-chan, hand me the soap.' Mechanically, he reached out and grabbed it, then let Takao take it from him. The fact that his vision was blurred comforted him a little. He didn't need to see anything he didn't want to see, and it wouldn't be strange or awkward.<p>

-

Takao took the soap from Midorima's hand. He didn't know very well what Midorima saw without glasses on, but it wasn't all that much. He grinned, thinking of how that might work in his advantage. He could make faces, signs that the other wouldn't be able to see, he could sneak up on him a lot better, he could hide his glasses and have a great laugh.

He could also look at him a little bit longer, as long as no one else noticed. But in Takao's eyes, every second was worth it. He didn't believe Midorima was very well aware of how he looked without clothes on, or how much of his magnificent figure they actually hid. Even their basketball uniform hid some of the most attractive features of a man's body.

Takao washed himself, catching glimpses of Midorima as he looked sideways. It was very nice to watch him like this, unaware, relaxed. See the muscles of his shoulders connect with those of his back. The tensing of the biceps, even when he was just washing his legs. Such long, strong legs.

Really, Takao thought, does this man even realise how good he looks? The only possible answer was no, because he knew that Midorima didn't care for that much. He took care of himself, it was in his nature, but he couldn't imagine him doing something like standing in front of a mirror and checking up on himself, flexing his muscles. The image that popped up in his head made him chuckle.

To be honest, Takao had done that once, but he had just felt sort of embarrassed, so he laughed loudly at himself and gave up. He had nothing to complain, really, which he knew just as well. He accepted himself as he was, he played basketball because he wanted to. That was all there was to it.

Or well, used to be. If he was perfectly honest, he'd found extra motivation to play basket once he was in a team with Midorima, and conversely, he might have had less if he'd ever had to face the Generation of Miracles in a regular team. It was only because there was one of them beside him that he sort of understood their strength and could bear standing up against them.

Once he was done, Midorima had just left. Takao had observed how he had swept his hair back, rubbed his face and then reached out to find his glasses. He couldn't very well see them, but he knew where he put them. He looked quite good too with his hair brushed back, Takao thought as he headed out as well.

After getting dressed, Takao took a bottle of water out of his bag and drank half of it. And then he blinked, suddenly getting an idea. It was a gamble of sorts, since it was something he had never tried before, with or without subliminal meaning.

He held out the bottle.  
>'Want some?' he asked, looking at Midorima.<p>

As he expected, the green-haired shooter looked surprised. Midorima's eyebrows went up slightly, and his eyes focused on the bottle before the gaze turned to his face. There were two possible answers. A generic one or a surprising one. Either was fine, Takao thought. It was just an idea.

'Sure.'

Midorima took the bottle, lifted it up and drank. All the while, Takao was just staring, his brain objecting to all sorts of normal behaviour. He didn't think this would happen. He tried desperately to find a reason why Midorima was strangely not-fussy about sharing a bottle.

Like, maybe he was used to it in middle school? Or at home? He could be very, very thirsty, but didn't bring a drink, and didn't feel like getting one from the vending machine. Besides, he might have ordered Takao around to get one for him in that case. Maybe, despite everything, he simply didn't mind at all?

'Thanks,' Midorima said as he handed the bottle back.  
>'Ah... yeah,' Takao answered, putting it back without thinking.<p>

Wait a minute, he thought. They had never ever shared a drink right? So was this that thing girls went crazy about? An indirect kiss? He had always thought it was ridiculous, but then why would he feel a little excited about having shared a water bottle? That was ridiculous!

Still, he thought, and wondered. Would you notice? That someone else drank from it? He gulped, and took the bottle back out, screwed the lid off and finished the remainder. The answer was no. But the circle was round. They had both shared the famous indirect kiss, and it make Takao a little giddy.

'Shin-chan, did you forget your water?' He made it sound teasing, as if to use this as explanation why Midorima had accepted his drink. But the other just pushed his glasses up.  
>'No, I brought one.'<br>'Hmm,' Takao murmured, leaning in a bit.

'Did you accept it cause we're friends?' This evoked a more violent reaction, Midorima shuffled aside, creating more distance between the two of them.  
>'Don't be ridiculous, Takao,' Midorima answered. 'We're just team mates.'<p>

This was a usual reaction, but for once it didn't leave Takao unimpressed. It stung, and angered him. His previous giddiness was instantly gone and replaced by disbelief and rage.

How long would Midorima want to keep that up? Why did he even try so hard not to be friends? It was so annoying! Pointless! As if he would purposefully ignore how the other person felt. Well, Takao did not understand why, but he knew it was a bad choice.

'Well, I offered cause __I__ see you as my friend. Maybe you should think about that for once.'  
>Takao grabbed his jacket and bag, stood up and walked away. He could feel Midorima's green eyes on his back. The shooter probably had no idea what happened, but neither did he, really. Just that it hurt...<p>

Of course it hurt... Takao slowed down soon, and sighed. Maybe he should not have walked out like that. But Midorima could be such a blockhead! How could he be so stubborn! Being friends wasn't something to be ashamed of or anything, was it? It's supposed to be a good thing! Couldn't he see that? What a dork!

'Stupid Shin-chan,' he whispered angrily. If this was how hard it was to get through to Midorima, he might as well brace himself and prepare for a long and heavy battle.


	4. Chapter 4

Midorima was utterly confused. His head had automatically turned to see Takao leave the dressing room. He expected Takao to be right back, and waited for the sound of indoor shoes turning around and getting nearer, but no one came. He stared at his feet for a while, thinking. He couldn't quite grasp what Takao meant. Or rather, why Takao had seemed so upset.

Should he not have accepted the water? Maybe that was the point. He nodded to himself. It would have been something like that, probably. Still it was pretty over the top for Takao to act like that. Usually he didn't care much, he never complained even when Midorima called him an idiot ten times a day.

Absentmindedly, Midorima put his things away, paying extra care to fold them neatly. He took so much time because he couldn't place what had just happened, and he wasn't sure if it were better if he did or didn't see Takao before going home. He couldn't even be certain that the other boy was still at school.

Something told him that he should say something, at least, but another part of him told him to let it be. He had done nothing wrong, but he felt guilt nagging, tugging on his nerves. It made him uneasy and tense. Taking his stuff, he walked out, passing by some team mates who greeted him, but he didn't hear it.

Of course Takao was nowhere to be seen. As Midorima exited the school grounds through the front gate, he took out his phone. No text messages either. Should he send something? But what? He was aware that something was wrong but he wasn't sure...

_'I offered cause I see you as my friend...'_ That's what Takao had said. But he knew that already, right? Even Takao himself had denied it once before, but later contradicted that same statement. Midorima stared at his phone, until the screen went black again.

"Friends." He mouthed the word. It sounded weird in his head, but even more alien if he tried to say it. Why was that? He accessed the internet and typed 'friend' in the search bar. The results yielded quite obvious answers. _'A person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard_,' he read quietly.

Well, sure. But in that case, if Takao thought of him as a friend, it was all fine, wasn't it? He scrolled down further, and came across the words 'friendship' and 'mutual affection'. He had started walking slowly, but stopped now. Mutual affection?

He stared at the screen, as it dawned upon him what had bothered Takao so much. Takao had declared himself a friend of Midorima, but he had completely pushed him away by not even accepting this as true. But was it true? When could you say a person is your friend?

The green-haired shooter put his phone away and looked up at the sky before he started walking home again. All the way home, he tried to figure out how to know if someone was a friend. He found it hard to put his finger on it, so he thought of how their classmates acted towards each other, or how it had been in middle school. Still, when did someone really qualify as a friend, more than a classmate to hang out with? And slowly he realised... it wasn't about what they did, or didn't do. It was about how you saw the other, nothing more, nothing less.

By the time Takao was home he felt bad leaving so suddenly, yet he didn't want to take back what he had said. But he couldn't help worrying about it. Would Midorima have thought nothing of it? Or would he have been shocked? What if he was angry? What if, in case Midorima really did not see Takao as a friend, he wouldn't want him to hang around anymore?

His shoulders slumped. That would be terrible. If that happened, Takao might as well quit basketball. If Midorima ignored him, he wouldn't be able to stand it. He let his bag fall on the bed, and sat down next to it. He pulled the zipper and took out the bottle they'd shared before.

"Shin-chan..." He squinted and looked at the bottle up close. An ordinary bottle. Now that it was empty, it was nothing more than trash. Still, this stupid thing was so closely linked to the one person who'd made Takao feel awfully joyful at first, and then angered him a lot.

"Why are you so distant," Takao whispered. Guys in high school were supposed to have friends, and do friend-stuff together! Like in a manga, where they go to an arcade after school, eat fast food, hang out near a convenience store or in a park, where they have youthful adventures during the summer holidays...

Of course real life was never that ideal, Takao knew that well enough. But still he might want to get closer... and he had someone who he'd want to be there during those moments, someone he liked to be a part of his high school life. Someone who mattered a lot to him.

He sighed. He got called down for dinner, but his food tasted rather bland. Soon after he returned to his room, turned on some music and tried to make homework, but he was more often singing along or thinking about Midorima than actually solving problems.

As he checked the time on his phone, he noticed he had gotten a text. Seeing the sender, he gasped and opened the message. His heart rate had gone up instantly from excitement, and he almost stopped breathing.

_Takao. I've made a mistake this afternoon.  
>Forgive me. All things considered,<br>I have concluded that you are, in fact,  
>my friend. See you tomorrow at school.<em>

It was so terribly stiff! He would've laughed if he could, but his throat was dry and he was just wordlessly staring at his phone. Even when the words disappeared from the screen, they rang on in his head. In his own stoic, clumsy way, Midorima had admitted that they were friends.

That was enough for now. Everything was okay. He didn't need to worry anymore. Takao blinked, then grinned. Then he laughed out loud, and read the text again.  
>"You blockhead," he said soflty, as he typed a reply.<p>

The next morning, Midorima met Takao on the way to school. The black haired boy had shouted out to him from meters away, so he reluctantly waited until he caught up.  
>"Goodmorning, Shin-chan!" he greeted happily. Midorima returned the greeting, as casually as he could. He'd liked to avoid more misunderstandings like the day before.<p>

Either way, everything seemed okay now, something that had also become clear in Takao's text message reply. At least Midorima could be at ease for now, so he felt quite relieved. He didn't even care that Takao was chatting away about the most random things.

"Hey, did you bring your lucky item?" Takao asked.  
>"Of course." Midorima lifted the plastic bag he was carrying. Inside it was a small basil plant in a pot.<br>"Oha Asa's been choosing weird times again, I see."

"I brought yours too," Midorima added. He'd noticed that scorpio's rank was very low, so while he was at it he'd just bought a lucky item for Takao as well.  
>"Ehh?" Takao objected, but he looked rather happy at the same time. Midorima took it out of his bag and handed it to his friend.<p>

"Eh... a bag of peanuts?" The black-haired boy accepted it and stared at it for a moment.  
>"Ah... thanks. Can I eat them?" What kind of silly question was that even, Midorima thought.<br>"Of course not, Takao. Oha Asa said 'a bag of peanuts', so you'd better not touch them until tomorrow."

"Sheesh, so strict!" He pouted a little, but even so stuffed the peanuts inside his schoolbag. Midorima sighed. This was why he wouldn't even comment on Takao's text messages anymore. Whatever he said, he didn't think the other would agree.

The rest of the day went by without any special events. Class was class, Takao was Takao and it was, in a way, good like that. Neither of them mentioned the event anymore. Still, Midorima felt a little bit different towards Takao. It could be said that he was more aware of him, and he'd noticed that he should be a bit more cautious.

After all, if they're friends, he should treat the other as one. Even if he wasn't really sure what difference it made exaclty. But he figured he'd find out along the way.

Being more aware also resulted in Midorima paying a bit more attention to what Takao was talking about, and sometimes he made an effort to throw in a word or two. It didn't slow the other down, though, it only made him more enthusiast.

For the first time, or so it seemed, he also noticed that Takao's hair was getting a bit long. That was at the end of the day, before going home.  
>"Takao, isn't your hair gonna get in the way for pactice?" Midorima commented. The other replied with an "Oh?" and tentatively measured the length of his bangs with his hands.<p>

"Hmm, well if you think so I'll consider cutting it," he finally answered, and smiled. It took him a second to actually grasp the difference, but this was a smile instead of a grin.  
>"That might be good," Midorima said, not knowing what else to add.<p>

At the crossroads where they parted ways they said goodbye. Somehow though, Midorima couldn't forget about that last smile. It had been just a meaningless smile, but maybe the fact that it was meaningless made it honest. No plans, not a single hint of malice, just a smile.

Midorima changed when he got home, ate dinner and headed out for piano lessons. Ever since he'd started playing basketball in junior high, he'd spend a lot less time on music, but he still tried to take one or two lessons a week.

Mainly because his mother wanted him to, she'd always been more in favour of the more 'intellectual' hobbies over sports and the like. Not that he disliked playing the piano, otherwise he'd have stopped in junior high, but sometimes it felt as if he was just acting according to people's expectations of him. He shrugged. It was probably partly his own fault either way.

Takao had forgotten to give the nuts back when they had parted after school. The bag was now sitting on his desk, inside his room. The black-haired boy was trying to do homework, but soon got sick of it. He pushed himself away from his desk threw his pencil on his books and looked at the bag.

Lucky item? He wondered what difference it made. It had been a regular day... if that was the effect of lucky items, he wasn't very interested in dragging something along every day.  
>"Might as well eat them," he whispered to no one in particular.<p>

He read some manga while munching on nuts.

_Shin-chan is at his piano classes right now. I've never actually heard him play._

_This manga is pretty good._

_Shin-chan never reads manga, or at least not that I know._

_There's even a glasses guy character in it. Shin-chan had some of those typical traits too._

All the while, his thoughts were sweeping back and forth between what he was reading and Midorima. Finally he had stuffed himself with nuts by eating almost half of the bag, and he had gotten thirsty.

In the fridge he found a can of red bean soup. He took it out, wondering if he should take it to school tomorrow. As compensation for the bag of nuts. Wait a minute, he thought. What was he thinking? That would be so unlike him that it'd creep Midorima out. So he put it back. Not yet. His heart was beating a little bit faster already at the thought, of giving something and hoping for a smile... but that wouldn't happen. Midorima would indeed just see it as paying off a debt and that would be it.

Drinking water, he still wondered. Should he? Should he not? Even when he went to bed he hadn't really decided. But when he woke up, he'd forgotten about it. Until he was on his way, and realised he had left the red bean soup at home.

He guessed he might as well need a lucky item today.

The next day, Midorima got up early since he wanted to sneak in some morning practice. After checking Oha Asa, he left the house, carrying a fairly large potted plant. Since his rank for the day had been low, he had purposefully chosen a rather big one, even if it meant people would stare after him all the way to school.

Then again, every time he dragged around anything strange - especially big items - he got lots of stares. He was aware that people in his neighbourhood called him a weirdo or nut job, but didn't care. They might not believe it, but man proposes, god disposes. And so far it had been a fair help in his life.

Besides, it was important that the man's part in this idiom was brought to the extreme. After all, it was only by doing everything that lies in ones power that one is worthy enough to receive adequate judgement and fate. So Midorima did as much as he could to play into the hands of destiny.

He left the potted plant outside the entrance door of the gymnasium, because it would be bad manners to bring it inside, and both the captain and coach would scold him if he spilled sand all over the floor while it was customary to leave your shoes outside.

Quickly he changed into a plain white shirt and dark green pair of shorts before he went inside. So early in the morning, it was still chilly inside and the smell of the freshly cleaned floor filled his nose. Midorima had always found it to be a nice scent, it was nostalgic and inspiring and it meant everything was still clean and unblemished.

He took a rack of basketballs along on the field before he did some warming-up exercises. Slowly stretching his muscles woke him up and made him alert and ready. Even if his horoscope had predicted moderate bad luck for today, he felt pretty good.

After throwing a set of three pointers from various positions on the court without any problems, he added some from a closer distance. For those, he focused on the curve the ball made before falling straight through the hoop. His throws were accurate and precise as ever.

Just for the hell of it, he even added a few dunks and some regular shots. After all, in a good team play, the need might always arise for him to take on different roles than just the shooting guard position. Once he had admitted the need to play _with_ the team instead of _for_ the team, he had grown in everyone's opinion.

Not that they didn't respect him before, but they were also intimidated and distant towards him. Now they openly respected him, and maybe partly thanks to Takao's presence, they started to really appreciate him. In turn, he was getting along better with the team members as well.

He hadn't really worked up much of a sweat when he was done, so he just quickly washed himself at the sink before changing back into his school uniform. Right when he was done changing, Takao barged in without even a knock on the door.

"Shin-chan! Good morning!" His loud voice rang through the entire dressing room and seemed to vibrate off the metal lockers.  
>"Don't be so loud, idiot," Midorima replied. As usual, Takao ignored the insult and walked over to him.<p>

"I saw the potted plant outside, so I knew you'd be here," he said, and laughed.  
>"Oha Asa seems to be favouring plants this week, I see." Midorima put his training clothes and towel away. "Possibly. I don't care as long as it has purpose," he answered in such a serious, convinced voice that Takao laughed even more.<p>

"Sure, sure. Well, I ate yesterday's luck. But I brought the rest if you want some too." For a moment, Midorima had no idea what his friend... it felt a little strange to think of him that way... was talking about. But then he remembered the nuts he'd brought.  
>"Maybe later," he said, shrugging.<p>

"You're actually in a good mood, aren't you?" Takao asked, leaning casually against the lockers, watching Midorima intently. He got no reply this time, and he wondered if his stubborn friend was struggling to come up with a satisfying answer.

But even so, he _really_ seemed to be rather chipper, if Midorima was ever like that at all. It was as if his aura was softer and he seemed more approachable, although no one but Takao would be able to see the difference.

According to Takao, there were three things that proved it. He hadn't snapped at him, his frown wasn't as deep, and he had once again given a positive response to an offer. That was a lot for Midorima on a daily basis. Takao smirked. _Thank you, potted plant._

"It's almost time for class," Midorima said, pretty much without any reason, as he hung his school bag over his shoulders. Takao nodded. Outside, he watched how Midorima easily lifted the potted plant and walked towards the school building.

The sight of it was positively hilarious, and he instinctively reached out for his mobile phone to snap a quick picture. But exactly when he managed to stay a few steps behind and readied his camera app, Midorima looked over his shoulder, as if he could sense what was going on.

"Don't," the taller teen warned. Takao's grin froze on his face. How did Midorima know? He was supposed to have the _hawk eye_ skill, not Midorima! He laughed apologetically and put away his phone. Dang it, he thought, another missed chance.

Everyone stared when Midorima put his plant in the back of the classroom, but no one made comments about it. No matter how used they were to this strange habit, they couldn't help it that when he brought something large or strange along it was worth to keep watching. And it was just as funny to see how little Midorima cared.

During lunch, they both nibbled on nuts after finishing their packed lunches. Takao remembered the manga he had been reading the evening before, and decided that if he really wanted to know things about Midorima, he'd better ask about topics that he wanted to hear about straight up.

"Hey, Shin-chan?"  
>"Hm?" Midorima looked up at him, listening with a surprisingly open expression on his handsome face.<p>

"Do you ever read manga?"  
>"Not often, but yes."<br>"Which ones do you like, then?"

Midorima blinked, but it wasn't clear to Takao whether it was because he had to think, or didn't want to answer.  
>"Why do you ask?" he replied. Once again, it sounded less harsh than usual. Maybe he drank more milk this morning, Takao thought.<p>

"No reason, I was just curious,' Takao answered, popping another nut in his mouth.  
>"Well, I read <em>Dragon Ball<em> of course, and..." Midorima stopped there and looked away a little. Takao shuffled in his seat, getting a little excited, because he felt that he'd somehow found a topic that - no matter how simple - brought Midorima out of his precious comfort zone.

"And things like _Slam Dunk_ and _I'll_." The tall teenager was looking at his hands that were lying on the table. Takao noticed that he was rubbing his left hand with his right a bit.  
>"Ohh, the classics," he chimed in happily. He didn't get why Midorima would be embarrassed about reading basketball manga, though, but it seemed that he was.<p>

But Slam Dunk was a special case either way, since it had really made basketball more popular as a sport at the time it was popular.

"Actually, I've read those too. But I can't imagine you buying the Shonen Jump magazine every week though," he added. Midorima shook his head.

"I didn't. I borrowed it from a classmate, like most of the kids did."  
>"Haha, right, of course. Wait, so tell me, who were your favourite characters? The shooting guards?"<p>

Midorima pushed up his glasses and for once instead of condescending, it looked like a nervous move. As long as Takao could remember, that was the first time this ever happened. He felt that the corners of his mouth were starting to tug up into a wide grin, but he controlled himself.

"W-well, they were all very inspiring," Midorima answered vaguely.  
>"Hmmm... really?" Then Takao suddenly remembered something.<br>"Moustache threepointer! That guy from _I'll_, he had this ridiculous moustache!" He couldn't hold himself anymore now that he pictured that guy's face and hairdo.

Takao burst out in loud laughter, and made multiple heads turn while Midorima frowned.  
>"Takao," he called out, pleading to be quieter, but Takao just laughed more.<br>"Ahaha, oh man, seriously?"

"Takao!"  
>"Ahh... sorry, haha. At least the one in Slam Dunk looked normal, right?" He had to wipe away the tears of laughter that had started to well up in the corners of his eyes. Midorima said nothing but silently glared at him.<p>

"But you know, those were really cool. Did you read any other series?"  
>Midorima's gaze shifted to his hands again. "Not really, no. Just sometimes, I read manga when I felt like it."<br>"Hmm. But I'm surprised you used to read it. You seem like the kind of guy who thinks manga is worthless."

It was barely visible, but Midorima squinted at those words, as if something smelled bad. "Anyone who honestly thinks that is wrong," he answered, sounding a little irritated. Takao couldn't really grasp why, though. Maybe Midorima secretly still read a lot of manga? Well, that would be quite something.

"Yeah, of course. I think manga is great. Uhm, I have some series at home, if you'd like to borrow them some time?" Takao smiled at his friend, not entirely able to hide his happiness. He really liked having conversations like this, they gave him some sort of warm feeling inside.

"That depends," Midorima answered while adjusting his glasses, "what do you read?"  
>Even though he'd asked the question, Takao wasn't really prepared to get this kind of answer. He grinned and scratched his head.<p>

"Uh, all kinds of things. Boys' manga, sports manga, some older series. I'll show you next time when you come over, okay?" Midorima nodded, quietly agreeing to this proposal. Takao remembered that he also had some series with lots of fanservice and a few 'adult' manga, carefully stacked away behind the regular ones. He was pretty sure Midorima did not read those.

Although, he admitted, it would be interesting if he did. At least, he wouldn't hide them from the other, just to provoke some more reactions from him while he was at it.


	5. Chapter 5

Later that week, right after Midorima and Takao had settled for lunch, the girl Takao had gone on a date with appeared in their classroom. She seemed to hesitate a little, and glanced at Midorima before she walked over.

The tall boy had no idea he was actually frowning, but then again it was a more like a natural expression to him. Takao waved at her and greeted her happily. She asked him if he would have lunch with her today.  
>"Oh," he heard Takao say. It took a while before he continued. Midorima was looking away, so he didn't notice that his friend was looking at him for a sign of confirmation.<p>

"Shin-chan, are you all right with that?"

"Huh?" Midorima turned his head. "You can do whatever you want, right?" He was unaware that it sounded a little harsh. Takao grinned apologetically, took his stuff and got up. From the corners of his eyes, the shooting guard saw the girl make a small bow of gratitude, before she turned and left the classroom.

He proceeded to eat his lunch in silence. He caught bits and phrases of his classmates talking, but he sat alone. It had always been like this, and it wasn't really a problem. Of course Takao could do what he wanted. If he was going to have a girlfriend, he should take care of her. Right?

Munching on food that seemed a little tasteless, Midorima's thoughts were free to go as well, undisturbed by Takao's relentless talking. He wondered if Takao really liked her. He didn't know why, but when he thought of people in love, he had this generic idea in his head that they could not shut up about the person they loved. And Takao never said anything about her.

Well, not that it mattered, he wasn't really interested in hearing about other people that he had no relation to. Basically he did not understand girls, he thought they were superficial creatures. They would judge others in an instant, talk behind others' backs, care too much about how they look, not how they act... No, he did not get why guys would want to be involved with a girl so much that they'd date her.

Maybe it was just because he didn't know any girls well enough personally, but he'd seen enough of their bad habits even in middle school when girls flocked around Kise just because he was handsome, and it became worse when it became apparent that he was talented as well. That didn't mean anything, he thought. They were just obnoxious fans.

After finishing lunch, he unconsciously sighed. He took his book out of his back, and went outside where he took a drink from the vending machine before going out to sit on a bench and read.

"Shin-chan!"

Takao came walking over in a quick pace. Midorima looked up from his book, and momentarily felt something strange. An unusual sort of happiness came rising up from somewhere deep inside of him, but before he could take hold of it, it was gone. Still, it had been there, he was sure of it.

"What are you reading?" Takao asked as he sat down as well, swinging his arm casually over the backrest, facing him with a happy grin.

"Oh, well. Just Haruki Murakami's latest novel," Midorima replied. If was the first time ever Takao had asked about something like books. Usually he would pout and say something like 'Shin-chan, you're such a nerd,' and then laugh.

"Is it any good?" Midorima blinked  
>"It's... have you ever read any of his books?" he added, partly asking the question to get an answer, but also because it would help to describe the novel.<p>

"Err... nope."  
>"Well," he continued, pushing his glasses up with his left hand, "it's definitely good. It's very... like him, I'd say. Sorry, but I can hardly explain it. Murakami has a unique style and his stories are... different."<br>Takao tilted his head, maybe waiting for more, maybe just processing things.

"If... you want, I'll borrow you one of his books." Midorima noticed that he was looking away while saying this, so he corrected himself quickly. He didn't know if his friend noticed, but he wasn't used to these things at all. They made him feel sort of uncomfortable.

"Sure! In return for manga, then. And I'll try to read it, I promise." Takao was beaming happily, and Midorima really had no idea why. Although it wasn't so bad, he thought. Maybe he had underestimated the importance of friendship, after all the things that happened during his Teikou years, where his team mates had definitely been the closed he'd had to friends. But everyone in that group was so unique and so talented that they were always at a distance from each other, in more than one way.

"Hey, come over to my place on Sunday, I'll borrow you some manga and you can bring me a book you think I should read!" Takao's invitation came very suddenly, but before he knew it, Midorima nodded and said: "Yes, that would be good."

On Sunday morning, Takao found himself confused about which t-shirt to wear. For some reason, he couldn't relax as he normally would. Maybe because he had been looking forward to today every remaining day of the week. Even though he saw Midorima every day, meeting each other in the weekend was still different.

And he wasn't sure why or how, or if the 'girlfriend plan' had anything to do with it, but Midorima had very quickly and seemingly gladly accepted his idea of coming over on their only free day. He was just very happy that it had turned out this way, but of course being happy didn't solve his outfit-problem at hand.

In the end he just settled for a light v-neck t-shirt with a dark blue sleeveless hooded vest over it. He combed his hair and looked in the mirror. Not bad. Right? I'm pretty okay-looking, right? He ran his hand through his hair. It was getting a bit long... but he preferred it on the longer side.

As he realised that he was really starting to question his looks, just because his friend was coming over, he clenched his fists. He told himself to stop acting like this. _There's no need, just, you know, be yourself. And stick to the plan, it's a perfect chance to talk to Shin-chan!_

Next, he made sure his room was tidy. Or at least tidy enough not to have Midorima make any immediate snorting sounds or comments about it. Last time, he'd had stuff and laundry spread everywhere, and his friend's scowl had been piercing enough to make the most fierce of dogs turn and run with their tails between their legs.

When he was done, he turned to his bookcase, checking out the manga he owned. Looking at some that he hadn't read in a while made him nostalgic, so he took one out and flipped through it. Before he realised, he was caught up in the story, only to be reminded of his visitor when the doorbell rang.

Throwing down the manga, he rushed out into the hallway and down the stairs. As he opened the door, Midorima was there, looking serious as always, but the light in his eyes was gentle. He was wearing a stylish dark grey shirt with black buttons and a pair of loose cotton trousers, in a very dark tint of green.

Takao took a little too long while he stared at his friend, and noticed that Midorima blinked, a questioning expression starting to show on his face.  
>"Oh, well, come in!" Takao said, and his usual grin returned to his face. His tall friend nodded and followed him inside, then swiftly took off his shoes and slipped his feet in a pair of guest's slippers that Takao took out of the cupboard.<p>

"As always, sorry for the mess." Takao felt the need to apologise, but only because the difference between the neatness and cleanliness of Midorima's house was so different from his own. There were too many shoes in the hallway, too many jackets on hooks, too much stuff everywhere and too many pictures on the wall.

But that was just how it was... Takao was used to it, and for all it mattered, one of the pictures of him as a child had made Midorima's lips curl up into something that was almost a smile. And then Takao told him the story of how he thought, as a kid, that he could float on water on a large leaf.

Of course, little Takao had fallen into the pond, and his mother had taken a picture of him when he had crawled out. Since the pond wasn't deep, it wasn't exactly traumatic or dangerous, and every once in a while some family member felt the need to tell the story.

"It's alright, Takao," Midorima replied to his comment about the messy state of the hallway. Takao observed his friend's face closely for a moment. He thought he saw something different about it, but he couldn't figure out what.  
>"D'you want a drink, Shin-chan?"<br>"If you're getting one, sure."

And so they went up the stairs, Midorima holding a large bottle of oolong tea, and Takao carrying a tray with two tall plastic cups and some snacks. Once inside, Midorima closed the door because Takao had his hands full.  
>"Thanks," he said, and put the tray on his desk. Takao's room was small, quite a bit smaller than Midorima's. And a lot more messy.<p>

"I brought a book that you might like," Midorima said, taking it out of the bag. Takao took it and read the title, raising one eyebrow.  
>"<em>Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World<em>?" He turned the book around to read the cover text. "It sounds weird, Shin-chan, but if you say so I'll give it a try."

"It is kind of weird, so I don't think everyone would like it, but..." Midorima stopped talking and cleared his throat. "I recommend it."

Takao looked up at his friend, and felt strangely fuzzy in his chest. Midorima sounded so gentle, and Takao wasn't used to that. It was much easier to act as he usually did when the other also acted... normal.

"O-Okay, thanks. I'll give it a try." Takao put the book on top of his bedside table and pointed to his bookshelf. "I've got my manga up there. There's two rows, if you want to check. Pick whatever you like."

The tall teen stepped closer, and had to bend down slightly in order to be at about the same height as the shelf with the manga on. He pulled out some volumes and looked through them. Takao went to sit down on his bed. He just quietly watched Midorima as he continued looking at manga.

Surprisingly enough, he took his time, but didn't say word the entire time, and even though Takao enjoyed looking at his friend, he couldn't see his face from where he was sitting, so he gave up and picked up the book he got. The sound of it made Midorima glance over for a moment, but he still didn't say anything.

Takao tried to read, but the silence was so overwhelming that he couldn't concentrate properly. He sighed loudly, making Midorima turn his way, holding a volume of Hunter x Hunter. In Midorima's large hands, all books seemed small and unfitting, but it still suited him.  
>"What's wrong?" Midorima asked.<p>

Takao looked up, thinking that this might as well be the first time Midorima asked that in a situation like this. Like he was really concerned in Takao's well-being.  
>"Ah... nothing, it's just that... it's too quiet."<p>

Midorima glanced at the manga he was holding and back to Takao.  
>"I'm sorry, it's because I was reading," he said, as he closed the book and put it back.<br>"No, no, it's fine... did you decide on something already? Do you want to read HxH?" Again, the tall boy glanced at the shelf of manga, and shook his head.

"Actually, I never really read Rurouni Kenshin, so I'd like to borrow that one, if it's okay."  
>"Sure!" Takao said, grinning. He jumped off the bed and took out some manga from the front row. "The first few volumes are in the back... How many would you like, for starters?"<br>"The first... five... should do."

Takao grinned as he purposefully took out a few of his 'adult' manga while taking the Rurouni Kenshin volumes. He made sure Midorima would notice them when he handed the right ones over. Midorima took them while saying thanks, but Takao was only watching Midorima's face in order to take notice of the smallest movement of his eyes. And yes, as he thought, Midorima did notice the other manga Takao was holding.

"Would you like some of these too?" He asked, holding a couple of hentai manga within reach.  
>Midorima's eyes ran over them and back to Takao.<br>"No, thanks."  
>"Are you suuure," Takao insisted, grinning widely. "You're a healthy adolescent, aren't you?"<p>

Midorima made a derogative sound, and put the Kenshin volumes in the bag he had brought along. "It seems to me that you are more of a healthy adolescent than I am. And even if I wanted to read such things, I wouldn't borrow them from you."

Midorima finished his talk by pushing his glasses up and glaring at Takao. The black-haired teen was momentarily dumbfounded. He might have hoped that Midorima would blush, but he didn't show any reaction. He was perfectly cool about it. And how!

"Shin-chan," Takao said, "I didn't know you threw curveballs like that."  
>"Huh?"<br>"Outside of the court, I mean," he added, and laughed. "I should have known the great Midorima Shintarou doesn't read porn."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Midorima frowned, but Takao wasn't sure if he was angry or disgruntled.  
>"Nothing, really. Just that you don't seem the type." Takao went to his desk, where the tea and cups were at, and poured them both a glass.<p>

"I know that," the green-haired teen said, and this sounded a little harsh again. It was a generally strange comment either way. Takao wasn't sure why Midorima seemed to be bothered more by not looking like the type who'd read porn, than seeing him wave around some hentai manga.

"So...," Takao continued after taking a sip. He decided that he might as well ask, maybe being straightforward could avoid misunderstandings.

"Do you read porn?" He thought he was calm, but he felt his face heat up a little. _Shit_, he thought. But finally he'd managed to make his friend react in the best possible way. He turned away, looking down, and a slight blush appeared on his face.

"I... don't." Midorima felt a bit warm, talking about something like that. He didn't know why, but it just happened. It was such an unusual subject to talk about too. Why was Takao so persistent about it? It was as if he wanted him to say 'yes', but he really didn't. It's not like he was completely unaware of porn or hentai or whatever, but he simply wasn't interested.

"I'm not into that kind of thing," he added, noticing that Takao was getting a bit red too. Or was it his imagination? He took his glass and drank a few gulps.  
>"R-really?" Takao grinned apologetically.<p>

Midorima frowned. He was getting sort of irritated. Glancing at one of the adult manga's covers, he put down his cup, and picked up the book.  
>"I don't see the appeal, that's all," he continued as he flipped through it. Takao watched intently, but he didn't notice.<p>

No, he really didn't get it. The drawing style wasn't very good, there was obviously nothing like a plot that could make it interesting, and it basically focused on glimpsing a woman's breasts or panties. He sighed, closed the manga, and handed it back to Takao.

"Here." Takao took the manga, and quietly gazed at him. His grey eyes were wider than usual, and he gulped.  
>"Whoa," he finally said. "I feel bad for all the hentai manga artists right now."<p>

"What do you mean?" Midorima answered, annoyed.  
>"I'll throw them all out, I swear. I thought you were gonna burn that manga to cinders just by looking at it."<br>"I don't understand. Be more clear, Takao." The black-haired teen laughed, amused by Midorima's crisp, direct language.

"You have no idea how disapproving you looked, do you? I'll take a picture next time, you'd scare yourself." Midorima looked at him for a while, and felt his features soften involuntarily. Maybe he was glaring a bit too much. It didn't really matter.

"I doubt it," he said, since he could think of a certain face that was much better at scaring people. Takao stepped away, saying that he needed to go to the toilet, and left his bedroom. Midorima sat down at the table, and looked around. There was a sock lying under the table, and a t-shirt had carelessly been thrown in the corner. It was kind of a messy room, but it was also cosy. You could tell that someone actually used it.

There were a few posters on the wall as well. One from the NBA, a band that Midorima had never heard of, and some movie posters. He slowly breathed in and out. This room also had a distinct smell. It was kind of a mix between the smell of wood from the traditional wooden parts of the room, and Takao's... everything. Probably including the sock.

Soon after, Takao came back.  
>"So, do you want to play a game or something?"<br>"Sure."  
>"Which one?"<br>"Doesn't matter, you can pick."

And so they spent most of their time playing a cooperative first person shooter game. Midorima wasn't great at them, but according to Takao, he wasn't half bad. It was just that Takao was - as he said himself - quite good. Maybe his skill had something to do with it as well.

While taking a break, Takao sighed loudly.  
>"Ahh, you know, I really like this."<br>"This game?" Midorima answered automatically, putting down his controller to drink a little.  
>"Well, more like, us playing games," Takao said with a laugh. "Don't you think it's fun?"<br>Midorima thought about it. The game was pretty good, and it was entertaining enough...

"I guess so," Midorima answered, but he didn't sound all that convincing.  
>"Do you need to think about it that long?," Takao asked, seemingly disappointed. But he still had his usual grin on his face. "You're unbelievable, Shin-chan! You shouldn't have to think so much about whether you like something or not, jeez!"<p>

Takao grabbed a snack and opened it. As he took a bite, he seemed to think of something.  
>"I bow! Be shoud bo bun buff tobethe!" Midorima crossed his arms.<br>"Don't talk with your mouth full, it's disgusting."  
>"Haha, sorry. I said, we should do fun stuff together!" Takao repeated, waving his chocolate bar around.<p>

"Fun stuff?"  
>"Yeah, like... all kinds of things that teenage boys do with their friends! You know, like in manga! And I mean, besides basketball. Cause that's great too, but..."<p>

Midorima thought about it. He wasn't sure what Takao meant, but he could think of some things. He felt as if it was something that was miles away from him right now, but hearing Takao talk about it made it seem a little appealing, although he wasn't sure if he'd like it.

Midorima cleared his throat.  
>"M-maybe it's not so bad."<br>"Right? Okay, I'll make a plan of action later." Takao looked happy and terribly enthusiastic for some reason. It made Midorima unable to suppress a minimal smile.  
>"Do finish your homework first, I'm not gonna help you during lunch every week."<p>

"Aw, shush. You're such a buzz kill, Shin-chan!" Takao playfully punched his shoulder.  
>Midorima felt hungry so he took a snack as well.<br>"I don't care if I am," he answered, feeling strangely light-hearted.

As he munched on the bar, he glanced at Takao, and wondered if he would've made other friends if it wasn't for him. Probably, he thought. Takao could probably be friends with a lot of people, the kind of people who knew what he meant when he said 'fun stuff', the kind of people who didn't need to think before answering. But still, Takao had somehow set his sights on him, Midorima realised. And it didn't feel bad at all.


End file.
